After a tumultuous start for markets in 2016, experts on Thursday cautioned that long-term investors should not panic. The Dow Jones industrial average and Nasdaq both closed the day in correction territory, more than 10 percent lower than their highs last year. The S&P 500 has fallen 5 percent already this year, its worst four-day start ever.
The selling, though, marks more of a “breather” or “reset” in a sustained bull market than fundamental weakness, contended Brian Belski, chief investment strategist at BMO Capital Markets.
“Longer-term investors should kind of watch the market settle in here, take a deep breath and let the fundamentals work,” he said on a CNBC special report Thursday night.
All three major U.S. averages slipped more than 2 percent on Thursday, with the Nasdaq taking the biggest hit of 3 percent. The selling in the United States followed continued uncertainty in China, where a more than 7 percent drop triggered a trading halt two separate times this week. U.S. futures pointed to more near-term uncertainty, indicating a mixed open on Friday. Still, CNBC’s Jim Cramer contended Thursday night he did not see risks of a “real catastrophe” like the 2008 financial crisis. FULL REPORT
